Neu Lorine Chia

: Lorine Chia
Based: Willoughby, Ohio
Listen: Soundcloud.com/lorine-chia
Similar to: Erykah Badu

Soul music is a hard thing to get right. It’s very easy to see through music that has a veneer of soulful sincerity, yet is really a construct, a soulless vacuum cynically engineered for maximum commercial effect. Lorine Chia is one of those few treasured new artists who gets it very right.

Born in Cameroon, Chia, she moved to Willoughby, Ohio aged six and has spent her life consumed with a simple joy of music. Now aged 18, Chia has nicely harnessed her sweet voice with a love of jazzy easygoing funk and soul on an excellent mixtape that introduces a new star.

Throughout the ‘NVRCH’ mixtape, there is a wonderful sense of freedom and expression. This is Chia doing what she always wanted to do. The sound flits from the languid, lilting melodic sound of ‘Crazy Things’ to the soft focus hip hop of ‘Living in Vein’ featuring Chance The Rapper, to the subtly atmospheric glitchy RnB stutter of ‘Vade Macum.’ It’s a sound that meshes both a classic soul sound and contemporary production techniques to excellent effect.

The one constant throughout is Chia’s remarkable voice. It’s a luscious and sensual thing of beauty; reminiscent of Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill she combines this lovely voice with a lyrical depth that belies her tender years. Eschewing vapid platitudes, these are questioning songs of faith and devotion that bear repeated listens.

DIY has a first play of the trailer for Lorine’s forthcoming new mixtape. Watch the premiere below: